Universal joints are common mechanical components in many products such as vehicles of all types and many other products which include the transmission of rotational mechanical power. The process of assembling the components of such universal joints is typically a manually-intensive procedure. As such, the procedure can be complex, time-consuming, difficult to maintain quality, and oftentimes can create unsafe production environments for the assembly personnel. There is therefore a need for a simpler, faster, more repeatable and safer method by which to assemble such mechanical components.
In the past, there have been some approaches to addressing these needs. U.S. Pat. No. 4,558,502 (Gossman et al.), entitled “Process and Apparatus for Assembling Universal Joints,” discloses a method and the accompanying apparatus for individually assembling a trunnion and its bearing cup in its corresponding yoke arm. Each yoke arm is pretensioned as part of the process disclosed.
Notwithstanding some efforts in improvement of assembly methods and related equipment, there remains a need for an accurate, high-speed and safe assembly method and related apparatus for that purpose.